North by Northeast Page 7

  Now, here he was full circle, tearing around Seattle, worrying himself sick about Lori. Yet, in a way, this was tied to that time. If they hadn't gone to the Marina Del Rey gallery if Lori hadn't placed paintings at that gallery, would he be here now? Would he be searching for her before some insane bastard took her life?

  But the glimmer of hope he needed surfaced in the form of a missing crewman. Hamish prayed the man wasn't lying somewhere at the bottom of the ocean. The sense of bleakness that hovered over him had eased. This felt hopeful.

  The knowledge that her kidnapper methodically stalked her for four years astounded him. And if Lurch's contacts were correct, the man must be buried one way or another. A killer who patiently waited four years was far too dangerous to be allowed to live.

  His hand strayed down to the top of his boot. Now he wished for the knowledge and ability to use a pistol. The man, Day, owned one, and Hamish didn't doubt Day knew how to use it.

  He was bringing a knife to a gunfight. Not the best way to do things. But, he also possessed a brain and knew how to use it. Now all he had to do was keep it engaged.

  The apartment complex was easy to find. Lurch parked in the next block past the building. They looked at each other.

  "So who is goin to talk to Elden's mum?" Thud asked.

  "I am," said Hamish. "But I want Glen tae accompany me. He looks innocuous. Mum should be impressed with his honest face. But I'm leavin my leathers here."

  H.M. got out of the SUV, took off his jacket, and tossed it on the seat. Glen followed him out of the vehicle. With Hamish in the lead, they walked over to the building.

  As they crossed the street, Hamish practiced a smile. A slight lifting of the corners of his mouth would work best. He needed to look sincere, but not swarmy like a salesman. As he knocked on the door, Hamish read the name from the small mailbox attached to the wall. The woman who responded to his knock had on worn jeans and a tank top.

  Hamish immediately addressed the older woman. "Good afternoon madam. Mrs. Daniels, I believe? My associate, an I are seeking Elden regarding employment, an were hoping you might put us in touch with him."

  She watched him warily. With a shake of her head, the woman pulled the door against her body. "What sort of employment? With what company?"

  Hamish reached into his back pocket, pulled out his wallet, removed a business card and held it out. "WarLoch Productions. We understand from his curriculum vitae, or resume, as you Yanks say, he did ah superb job managing the Sunny Day. We are in need of someone with those skills. I know it's rather late in the day, but we were hoping ta catch him on the Sunny Day. Unfortunately, we had difficulty getting to Seattle due ta delays."

  Hamish cleaned up his Glaswegian, but he did not go into upper crust, as he thought it might be too much for the woman to warm up to. The door opened slightly wider as she stared at the card. Her eyes were still wary as she looked up at him.

  "That Day man..."

  "We hear he is ah most difficult individual ta work for Madam," Hamish cut her off. "In fact, I'm not ta fond of his business practices." After erasing his smile, Hamish went into serious businessman mode.

  Elden's mother opened the door. "Come on in. The bastard turned Elden out without a severance package or reference. You aren't an American, are you?"

  Mrs. Daniels led both men into a small but clean living room. She motioned them toward the couch as she took a chair near the door.

  "No, Madam. I usually handle the European end of the business. Due to ah spot of bother, I had ta come over ta this side of the pond ta deal with things. My contacts have informed me Elden is able ta help us with this. I truly would like ta discuss this with him."

  She held the card in two fingers as she inspected it. After a moment, the woman came to a decision. She reached for the phone on the small table beside her. Mrs. Daniels dialed the number on the card. She listened to the individual on the other end of the line then asked if H.C. MacGrough was a partner in the company. Mrs. Daniels asked the other person to describe Mr. MacGrough. Her eyes ran over Hamish and then she nodded. After a quick "thank you", she hung up the phone.

  "Well, Mr. MacGrough, it appears you are legitimate. I woke up to find Elden asleep on the couch this morning. He had difficulty with that Day man, but wouldn’t tell me what it was. He borrowed money from me for a motel room, enough for a week."

  She reached for the phone book. The woman balanced the book on her lap and flipped through it. When she found the section she wanted, she ran a finger down the page, scanning the entries.

  Mrs. Daniels looked up at Hamish. "I noticed when I put the phone book away, he had made a check mark by this one. It's on 125th Avenue. Did you want to write this down?"

  She read the address. Glen drew a pen from his jacket pocket and handed it to Hamish. After pulling another card from his wallet, Hamish wrote the address on the back.

  "Thank you, Mrs. Daniels. Would you happen ta know the room number?"

  "Hold on." She called the number for the motel and asked for the room number for Elden Daniels. The woman mouthed 115 to Hamish. After thanking the person on the other end of the call, Mrs. Daniels hung up the phone.

  "That bastard Day, had no business getting rid of Elden without paying him what he owed him. I told Elden to take him to the State Labor Board, but he won't do it. Elden and I aren't on good terms today. I told him not to take the job in the first place. He doesn’t want to hear it." She shrugged. "So we aren't speaking again. Raising a kid by yourself is hard. It’s no fun, Mr. MacGrough."

  Hamish took her hand at the door. "I understand the difficulties, Mrs. Daniels. My mum raised me without a man around. ‘Tis hard."

  Her eyes filled. "I hope you can talk sense into Elden, Mr. MacGrough. He needs to find a job that’s going somewhere, rather than something just for fun."

  With a nod, he thanked the woman for her help, before turning to walk away. Feeling slightly guilty, he walked over to the Jeep. Hamish got in the front seat, leaving Glen to climb into the back with Thud. It was possible he would hurt her son and hurt him badly. The boy was involved in murder and might well have participated in Lori's abduction. Hamish didn’t plan to play nice.

  After Hamish had tossed Glen the map book, Glen gave the address to Lurch. He was glad to hear it wasn’t far from where they were. At least we don't have to go to the other side of Seattle again, Hamish thought as he leaned against the door.

  Lurch tapped a rhythm out on the steering wheel. "How the hell are we going to get him to let us in? If he is running from his boss, the guy won’t open to strangers."

  A few blocks down the street, Hamish spotted a pizza place. "Stop here!" he called out.

  Thud leaned forward over the back of the seat. "What are ye doin, H.M.?"

  Glen laughed. "I get it; we’re going to buy him a pizza."

  "Aye, that we are." Hamish almost dove out of the car when Lurch pulled it over. With a stiff arm, he pushed open the door and ran into the pizza parlor. When he came out, Hamish was carrying a take-out box and a cap from the pizza joint. After adjusting the hat so it was on the large side, Hamish put it on.

  They reached the address a few minutes later. A two-story motel. The number they were looking for was on the lower floor.

  Hamish insisted on being the one handling the pizza. Lurch tried to argue him out of it as he did not speak 'American.' The look Hamish turned on Lurch caused the big man to look away.

  "I'm doin this. Back off!" H.M. glared at him. Lurch backed down.

  Hamish turned in his seat to face Glen and Thud in the back. "The three of ye come up on tha right side. The door will open in. Ye can push it in if necessary."

  He pulled the bill of the cap just far enough forward to cover his eyes. As Hamish balanced the pizza box in one hand, he opened the car door and got out of the jeep. Eyes on the door of the room, he pushed the car door shut with his hip.

  The other three doors closed with a dull thump behind him. Hamish walked over to the door mar
ked number 115 and held the pizza box where it could easily be seen from the peephole. A glance to his right reassured him the other three men were waiting. They were out of sight of anyone inside. Hamish rapped sharply on the door. There was a scraping sound.

  "Who is it?"

  Hamish read out the name of the pizza place from the top of the receipt. "Pizza, man."

  "I didn't order any damn pizza. Beat it!"

  "Says room 115, an it was prepaid by credit card."

  Hamish heard the sound of the deadbolt being turned. He counted to four before throwing himself against the door. It flew open, and the hat tumbled to the floor. The pizza box flew off to one side as Hamish rushed the young man he had knocked backward. Before anyone else could make a move, H.M. had Elden jacked up against the wall by his throat, feet off the carpet.

  He allowed Daniels’ to slide down slightly. The man balanced on his toes. Hamish put his face inches from Elden's. “Tell me where tha Sunny Day's hidin, or I will throttle ye!”

  "Jaysus, Mary and Joseph, H.M., ye're gonna kill tha bugger! Let him go, man!" Thud yelled at him. Someone tried to pull him away. Without taking his eyes from Elden, Hamish twisted his body, driving his right elbow backward. He heard the air whoosh out of the person behind him. There was a grunt. Hamish tightened the fingers of his left hand slowly.

  Inches from Elden's face, Hamish whispered, "I'm gonna kill him slow if he nae tells me where tha bleeding boat is hidden." Hamish shook Daniels, who was now clawing at Hamish's hand. Long, lean fingers filled with strength from years of keyboard practice bit into Elden's soft flesh, cutting off his air supply.

  Hamish shoved his right hand in Elden's groin, then squeezed. He bounced the young man on his toes before loosening his grip on the man's throat slightly. Hamish's fingers clamped harder into Elden's balls. There was a wheeze in response as Daniels could not breathe well enough to gasp.

  The rasp of the young man's breath was the only sound in the small space. There was utter silence behind Hamish. It was as if he and Elden Daniels were the only two people in the room. It took every bit of control Hamish could summon to keep from letting his fingers rip into Elden's body to finish what he had begun.

  H.M. let his gaze drop to Elden's groin. Eyes filled with fury rose to the man's face, and Hamish tapped his forehead hard against Elden's. In an almost mild tone, he spoke to Elden again.

  "Which da ye wish tae loose first, man, yur balls or yur breath? One or tha other are gonna be tha death of ye if ye dinnae spit it out before I lose me patience."

  On his toes, Elden was trying to arch away from the hand that held his balls in a vice like grip.

  "I want me wife! I will have her over yur dead arse if I must."

  "Hyder!" Elden managed to screech out.

  Hamish relaxed his grip on Daniels' groin and smiled at him. "More, man, or ye're gonna be ballock-less."

  "A ghost town… right next to… Stewart, British Columbia... in Alaska. No real law there. For God's sake, man, ease off! Please?"

  "I'm gonna do ye ah favor, Elden. I'm gontae believe ye. If I find ye're lyin tae me, I will find ye an before I rip yur ballocks off, I'll cut yur lyin feckin tongue out so I dinna have tae listen tae ye scream."

  He could not help himself, the pipes were screaming through him. He released the man's groin. Hamish's right hand flew to his boot, and he jerked out the dagger. It flashed upward to Elden's throat, the tip of the knife pricking the skin just under the man's jaw.

  There was an intake of breath behind him from all three men. No one made another sound. Hamish pushed lightly on the handle of the small dagger. Elden rose on his toes again, trying to escape the sharp point of the knife now pushing into his skin.

  Hamish's voice was thick with emotion. "Ye bloody wee bastard! How could ye let the rotter kill tha others? What kind o’ dog shite are ye? If he hurts me woman, I will verra slowly watch ye die. Understood?"

  Body pulsing with the need to draw blood, Hamish forced himself to lower the dagger. With fingers that shook, he pushed it back into his boot. When he released Elden, the young man slid down the wall onto the floor.

  Daniels drew several breaths before speaking. "At first, I didn't realize what he was doing... I’ve only been working for him maybe ... a year now. The crew told me I better quit... Juan, the seaman, said Day was a murderer. I thought he was crazy. Then, when they grabbed your wife, it was the last straw. If he finds me, he'll kill me. I'm running out of places to hide."

  "How many men are on the bloody ship?" Hamish asked him.

  "The captain, Miguel, the first mate, Louis, and then there is Juan. If you found me, Day can't be far behind."

  Glen stepped up beside Hamish. "I can help you, if you want to get away. But you might have to testify against the bastard."

  "All I wanted was a decent job. It sounded like the dream job. I didn't bargain on working for a killer." Elden had a hand on his throat. He rubbed the red finger marks.

  Glen nodded. "Then I can help. A friend in L.A. will help you to stay out of sight until we know what is happening with Day. But you've gotta be positive on the information on the Sunny Day."

  Elden nodded. He glanced at Hamish, who was flexing the fingers of both hands, then looked back at Glen. "Hyder is the only place in Southeast Alaska you can drive to. It's like, right next to Stewart, British Columbia. But Alaska considers it a ghost town. The State Troopers don't go there for much of anything. The Mounties are the only law around, and they don't mess with much other than killings. There’s a harbor there where the Sunny Day can tie up, no problem, no questions asked. There isn't even a harbor master.”

  Hamish squatted down, his eyes boring into Elden's. "What about Mexico? Where does he go there?"

  "Down past Cabo. There’re some small fishing villages and some isolated bays. He hangs out there. If he has someone to dispose of, he usually does so in one of those bays. Buries them up in the desert, according to Juan. I swear to God, man! I had no idea what a bastard he was! Juan told me all about it." Elden held both hands up toward Hamish.

  Lurch tapped Glen on the shoulder and passed him a piece of paper. Glen took a quick glance at the note and saw Lurch had written Warren's address on it. The bass player pulled out his wallet, removed two bills and looked down at the man on the floor. He tossed two hundred dollars in cash and the paper to Elden. "Do you have a car?"

  Elden nodded. "Yeah."

  "Drive to Los Angeles tomorrow. As soon as you get there, call this number. Tell Warren Glen Barrett sent you."

  Thud broke in. "Tell Warren Glen sent ye intae safe keeping for the Head Master. He will understand ye're tae be tucked away careful-like."

  Lurch spoke up, "We need to get out of here now. Elden, if anyone asks what was going on, just tell them you had the TV up too loud on an action movie. And you might even consider leaving tonight. We found you without any trouble. You'll be safer on the road than in Seattle."

  Thud reached out to grab Hamish by the shoulder. The drummer felt the trembling surging through his friend's body. "We need tae get on this, boyo. ‘Tis ah long way tae Stewart."

  Hamish turned away. He was the first one out the door and into the Jeep. He settled himself in the passenger side seat silently. Lurch got in the driver's side and took a long look at Hamish, who slumped against the door. Thud leaned forward from the back seat.

  "Hey, boyo! Ye learned some great moves in Glasgow. I dinna know ye had it in ye. Jaysus, but I thought maybe Mr. Hyde had taken over. Where did mild-mannered H.M. the "Head Master" vanish too? I thought marriage took ah wee bit o’ tha starch from ye."

  "Shut ye gub, eejit. I'd wipe out half of Seattle tae get Lori back. She's all I have, ye arsewipe. Without her, I dinna give ah shite," Hamish spat out at Thud.

  Thud fell back without a sound. Hamish stared out the window for a while. Then he turned to glance back at Glen and Thud. Facing forward again, Hamish folded his arms across his chest. "We need a plan. We should get ah couple of rooms. Toss this
round ah bit tae see what can be done. 'Tis too late tae do much this day except tae get as close tae Canada as we can."

  Hamish leaned his head back against the seat. "Ye up for it, Lurch?"

  "Yeah. We'll get as far as Blaine, find a place to stay, then hash this out." Lurch settled into drive mode.

  H.M. glanced at his watch. It was 6:00 p.m. How could it be only 6:00 p.m.? Hamish asked himself. It felt as if he were on a major speed trip. Nine hours had passed since he’d landed at SeaTac airport.

  Exhaustion was pulling at him. His head lolled back against the seat and tipped toward the window. Hamish had succumbed to jet lag and anxiety. Glen stuffed his jacket between his friend's head and the window, but the man didn't stir. Hamish was asleep.

  It was dark when Hamish woke to find they were in Blaine. Through the windshield, Hamish watched as Lurch got them a room in the motel they sat in front of.

  Thud patted Hamish's shoulder. "How you doing, boyo? Ye were beyond knackered lad."

  Hamish stretched and yawned. "I may live now. What time is it?"

  "'Tis near 8:00 p.m. U.S. time, and we're in Blaine. Glen an I napped as well. Lurch got us here. Tha lad is gonna need tae rest."

  Lurch came out of the office and climbed back into the SUV. "I'll drop you two at the room then swing back for Glen. We'll be back with pizza and beer." Lurch tossed the room key to Hamish. "It's number 105.”

  Hamish grabbed his jacket in his free hand and got out of the Jeep. With the drummer right behind him, he opened the door to the room. Thud followed him in. There were two double beds inside. Hamish headed for the bathroom after dropping his jacket on the closest one.

  "Don't take tae long, boyo. I'm near tae burstin," Thud called out to him. Hamish hurried and was sitting on the bed when Lurch and Glen came in. Glen grinned at Hamish. "Hungry, man?"